Perhaps the brightest spots in this one were the Cowboys’ running offense on offense and their defense on the other side of the ball. Dallas averaged 5.0 yards per carry with Malik Davis leading the way with 51 yards on eight attempts, a 6.4 average. Meanwhile, the Cowboys allowed just 1.8 yards per carry, with no one from Denver gaining more than 20 yards in the contest. Behind center, last year’s second-year quarterback, Cooper Rush, started and hoped to show the coaching staff that he was worth keeping. After that, though, the battle with Will Grier to see who will back up Dak Prescott will be more intense than ever. Going into the third quarter, Rush completed 12 of 20 pass attempts for just 84 yards with no touchdowns and one interception for a disappointing 48.8 passer rating. With Grier out of the lineup with an injury, Ben DiNucci handled the passing duties the rest of the way and finished 9 of 16 for 112 yards with a touchdown and a 99.0 rating. Brandon Smith only had one catch, but it went for 40 yards, leading the Cowboys in receiving yards. First-round draft pick Tyler Smith got his first taste of NFL game action and looked impressive at times. As might be expected in any rookie debut, he had his share of mistakes, including a couple of penalties, but his power was on full display as he tussled his defender on numerous occasions. Neither offense could get much going early as both teams went three-and-out on their first two possessions. The Cowboys’ offense finally made some headway on their third down, thanks to an 18-yard completion to Dennis Houston that got Dallas up midfield. And it was down to the home team’s 38, but on fourth-and-2, rather than give a chance to one of the two players vying for a roster spot, head coach Mike McCarthy decided to go for it. Under heavy pressure up the middle, Rush’s pass to Jaylen Tolbert was intercepted and the drive ended. A short while later, Denver found itself in a similar situation, facing a fourth-and-2 at the Cowboys’ 29-yard line. But Dante Fowler burst through the line from his right defensive end and pressured quarterback Josh Johnson, who threw the ball incomplete. The second frame began with the Cowboys again failing to convert a fourth-and-2, this time Tolbert unable to hold onto a pass over the middle. Unfortunately, that gave Denver possession at the Dallas 47-yard line, and three snaps later, Josh Johnson connected with Brandon Johnson on a 40-yard completion. The Broncos then capped the drive with a pass to Seth Williams, who came down with the ball for the game’s first score. On Denver’s next drive, the Dallas defense appeared to run off the field after a third-and-13 effort that fell short. But Tarell Basham was called for pass interference, giving the Broncos new life. They took advantage, adding seven more points after Kendall Hinton jumped over the Cowboys’ Nahshon Wright to haul in a 24-yard touchdown pass. Dallas got in again just before halftime. The Broncos missed a 57-yard field goal as time expired, but Kelvin Joseph was called for an offsides penalty, giving Denver another chance five yards closer. And this time the effort was good, the Broncos going into the beak with a 17-0 advantage. The penalty shootouts continued where they left off. On their first possession of the second half, the Cowboys decided to go for it on fourth-and-1 at the Denver 41-yard line. However, a false start pushed them back five yards, and then a 25-yard completion was nullified by a holding call. With that, Dallas booed. As rain began to fall on their next drive, the Broncos advanced from their own 1-yard line to the Dallas 4. But that’s where the Cowboys defense held its ground, holding Denver out of the end zone on four goal-line attempts. . DiNucci took over as the Cowboys’ next possession went into the final frame and brought a spark to the offense. At least he got the team back into midfield, and while McCarthy this time decided to try the field goal, Lirim Hajrullahu’s 56-yard effort was ruled out soon after Bryan Anger struggled to handle a wet ball in the gap . The Cowboys finally got on the board with less than five minutes remaining. Starting at their own 5-yard line, the offense went 16 plays with rookie Davis rushing three times for 16 yards and hauling in a pass for nine more. DiNucci finished with a 12-yard strike to Simi Fehoko for the touchdown, Dallas was able to at least avoid the shutout.
